600 police officers to be deployed for Kuomboka Ceremony; President Lungu, GBM and HH to attend

A beautiful site we will not be seeing this year.The Nalikwanda royal boat sails on the Baroste flood plain after leaving Lealui during the 2011 Kuomboka ceremonyThe Zambia Police Service has announced that it will deploy 600 of its officers to this weekend’s Kuomboka ceremony.

President Edgar Lungu will be the Guest of Honour while opposition leaders Hakainde Hichilema and his Vice Geoffrey Mwamba are also expected to be in attendance.

The ceremony which is a big tourist attraction is held to mark the shifting of the Lozi King Litunga from his traditional palace in Limulunga to the day parts in Lealui.

The annual festivities of Kuomboka will start from the Royal Capital of Lealui, and will conclude in the Summer Capital, in Limulunga. Kuomboka means “getting out of water” in Lozi and the celebration takes place at the end of the rainy season, when all lower lands are flooded by the Zambezi River, and it redraws the move of the king of the Lozi people, the so-called Litunga.

This year, the royal barge Nalikwanda will demand more paddlers than ever (180 instead of 120), making this celebration the grandest ever.

Famous for its big papier-mâché Elephant on the barge, the Nalikwanda takes a whole day to cover the distance between the two villages.

The last time the ceremony was held was in 2012.

Low water levels on the Zambezi plains and the death of the Queen have been officially blamed for the hiatus.

46 COMMENTS

Lungu was not invited there and he is just taking a bad omen to the event. Just because hh was going he has also decided to go. Let lungu use mazhandu bus to travel I will personally pay for his ticket

Who will back-out? It will be interesting to see HH listening to ECL’s speech and at the same time not recognising him as President. Where will HH BE DURING THIS TIME? May be in the hotel room watching everything from ZNBC TV.

Someone educate me. This is not a political function and one would not expect political speeches. I believe there is a norm regarding how the Litunga is welcomed on arrival and the function must run its course with the touristic and political aspects at arms length. Or are we saying the Kuomboka Ceremony is no longer a traditional phenomenon now turned a tourism spectacle!

1. The President of Zambia has neer required an invitation to go to any part of Zambia or attend any ceremony that is happening on Zambian soil. NEVER!
2. Kindly, re study and re-state the terms you use. An omen cannot be moved. it is an occurence or lack thereof and always spoken of in the past.
3. You may be the most prolific responder through comments, that certainly doesn’t make you anywhere close to the best blogger. You are like the dumb @ss in class that always has his hand up to always give a wrong answer. Your responses are not researched, have no backing and are presented poorly.
Your’re a sad form of cranial flatulance

I hope Mushota and NEZ managed to attend class. The topic is that the Police have deployed 600 Police officers at Kuomboka. In comprehension at school, they said you pick out the salient issues – these being, Police, Kuomboka, 600 officers.

Ministry of tourism:
advocate to make all major traditional ceremony observance days public holidays, and if we have too many, you may eliminate
April 6 – Good Friday
April 9 – Easter Monday
October 18 – National day of Prayers
December 25 – Christmas Day

Litunga may be thrown in the water during this years Kuomboka. That’s the reason for bringing in Lungu so that security is beefed up.

He’s taken all the gains that Barotse have achieved in the last few years. He’s a sell-out to the Lozis.

Even his father’s reign was shortlived. He was one of the most hated king ever who was actually trapped and killed on the throne because of his failures to Rule Barotseland.

After the Barotse nationalists had killed him, they went further for his children. That’s how Lubosi & rest of family fled to Kabwe where he now has a big farm. He spends most of his time there instead of solving problems in Barotseland. That’s why he’s compromised with Lungu Govt.

What are they afraid of, i saw the same security at c’wala ceremony of course not at same grand scale as kuomboka, where impis were sidelined for para military police security to guard that tu nyama twamene bashokela mupezeni, this is the first time i have seen the police entangle themselves in traditional ceremonies at the expense of traditionalists since unip. Bayopa chani?

Lungu has divided Zambia through vote stealing. He should be guilty of his actions. He has been very selfish to Hakainde but what goes around comes around. When Jacob in the bible tricked the brother Essau consequences followed him. He had to repent for God to hear him. It is dangerous to sin against God as no one can mock him. The Kuomboka ceremony why force himself on Lozis when they clearly don’t like him. How many people are going to die due to forcing them recognise Lungu. Akoni kekala pa chimuti katemenwe.

Po-omboka indeed. The police are to omboka to Barotseland where they continue to commit murder and rape, and miam the innocent souls whose only crime is to be born Barotzish, and the love of their country which they hope to save from the shackles of North-estern Rhodesia slavery.

HH will be listening to the Republican President ECL’s speech as he will seat quiet and he will leave Kuomboka minus giving any official speech.that is the difference between an opposition party leader(HH) and a Zambian President ECL!!!moreover,if HH and his cadres misbehave in Mongu-ZP will deal with them severely!!!

njimba – you are a pf fool – the difference is HH is loved and does not need 600 police officers to surround him at a ceremony that has been going on for years…..THIS IS A DISGRACE TO OUR NATION.
FOREIGN TOURISTS TRAVEL FROM FAR AND WIDE TO SEE THIS GREAT MAJESTIC EVENT ONLY TO ARRIVE IN AN AREA THAT IS SURROUNDED BY 600 POLICE – I GUESS THEY WON’T BE COMING BACK AGAIN. DISGRACEFUL !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There is no need to insult each other Zambians! Let’s celebrate all our traditional ceremonies and appreciate each one whether it be N’cwala, shimunenga, umtomboko, likumbi lya mizhye, ukusefya pa ng’wena or kulamba. It is this cultural diversity that must unite us. We are all Bantus.

MAN!!! Commentor, yours is the best comment on this blog! I am amazed why we all can’t just get along especially during a rich cultural heritage like the Kuomboka ceremony. I come from the Bemba royal establishment but I have enjoyed Ukusefya pa Ng’ena. Umutomboko, Kuomboka, Likumbi Lya Mizhye, Nc’ala and Kulamba.
We are such a rich country and we have co-existed and inter-married for generations that I find it very awkward when people refer to each other using colonial boundaries. That is how low we have stooped because of politicians anger for power!
Let’s enjoy our KUOMBOKA this year! I speak Silozi and I will definitely enjoy.

Is this a ceremony or maybe some Indunas are still trying to DETHRONE the LUTUNGA? for such a larger number of Police officers to be deployed!! Something fishy is going on….Well, good luck to the Litunga and his people. And for those who are attending this ceremony have fun and stay safe.

HH and GBM will attend but whilst ECL will be giving a speech, the two GIANT LEADERS WILL CLOSE THEIR EARS WITH THEIR FINGERS, WHEN MASTER OF CEREMONY STARTS TALKING THEY WILL REMOVE THEIR FINGERS FROM THE EYES , NOW THIS WILL TRIGER THE POLICE WHO WILL WANT TO ASK THEM WHY CLOSE EARS When LUNGU is talking ? WAPYA MUNZI

Mushota is a divisive fellow. Why should someone be banned from attending this ceremony after all he is attending in his capacity as a responsible citizen? Then she goes on to write ” After all he is Tonga”. When did Tongas stop being Zambians Mushota? What a brainless lady in you…………………………..

Kuomboka will be dented if prominance will be up held. All should attend with a spirit of One Zambia one People regardless of different affliations whether political nor triabal.Infact they must ban political regalia to worn at the ceremony.

Too many cops… this ceremony has always been peaceful and now the cops will be everywhere. 3 things at play here, hence so many cops:
1) Litunga is not very popular and some Indunas want him overthrown;
2) Barotseland want self-rule and PF and Litunga are standing in the way of this self-rule;
3) Lungu stole the elections and he’s regarded by some, especially in Barotseland and Southern as illigimate;

If lungu and Hh were men enough, they would bury their political differences and sit side by side at such a non-political and unifying cultural even. If they don’t, the organisers should compel or deliberately force them to sit next to each other, like they would at a funeral.

Finally I’m hoping the paddlers don’t drown the Litunga… he needs to be removed by other democratic…

I think politicians should not attend the ceremony in their official capacities. The occasion is diluted with such masqueraders. Everyone should attend in their private capacities. Traditionally this is a necessity movement (moving to higher land until the waters recede) But I see politicians and other ‘chancers’ in the forefront of an occasion that has nothing much to do with them.

This man called Lungu does not get it inside his thick head that his Presidency is cursed because he stole the election victory from HH because his master RB was scared that he will be prosecuted. to prove that his prrsidency is cursed on inauguration the dove fell like his name chagwa it only flew after another attempt.The economy is crumbling under him and no money is going to be given by IMF. this is what happens when you do something which God has not blessed Lungus time in office will be very tough because of this.For the kuomboka its better he stays away as he is a cursed man we dont know what will happen it might rain so heavily or people will not attend the ceremony in droves.HH is the one the people of Barotse want as he is the real president no Lungu the drunkard and moslem.God…

Lungu the thief thinks that by attending the kuomboka he can launder his tattered image. he craves recognition so much that he has asked for people to pray for HH what kind of prayer is that its a thief asking for people to pray that he is not caught.Recognition is for HH who won not an imposter who has to go around with a abattalion foe safety he is a prisoner in plain sight he will never enjoy the illegal presidency let him have no peace. NO PEACE FOR THE WICKED. His eyes are blood shot because he is tormented for stealing the victory.